Keys Cafe - The original — Restaurant in Saint Paul

Keys Cafe is a great local brand. The Raymond location is where it all started. Hopefully the owners might provide the attention this store needs to preserve their brand. Many reviewers have had very postive experiences. But since reviews are subjective based on an individual experience on a given date and time, I thought I might offer insight as to my recent experience

It has has been a number of years since my last visit to Keys Cafe on Raymond. On my recent return visit I came in early (8:30) on a Sunday to avoid the late morning weekend rush. Many reviewers comment and rate negative on the place as being packed and noisy. Most popular places are. But you can avoid this by coming in early.

I sat at the counter and was offered a glass of water after a few minutes which was acceptable given the server was covering tables in addition to the counter. Coffee followed quickly afterwards. Standard restaurant coffee, nothing spectacular but acceptable. Cream is the over processed little packets.

After reading through reviews on menu choices I settled for the cafe standard Ranch breakfast with hash browns, 2 eggs, choice of meat (selected bacon) and toast. The menu itself is basic breakfast fare. Nothing fancy. The food came out about 15 minutes later which seemed long given the kitchen was not busy. Sitting at the counter you have a full view of the cooking area. The cooks seemed distracted and engaged in early morning banter. But I can barely make breakfast at home in 15 minutes and if I expected food sooner I should go to a fast food restaurant.

When the food was delivered the bacon was a pile of 5 strips with one charred black (carbonized) with 2 others a coil of under cooked rubber/fat. The server noticed me picking through the pile and asked if I had 5 slices she thought I was counting so I pointed out the 3 inedible slices. She quickly returned with 3 perfectly cooked slices of bacon. I would question why anyone would let the first order leave the kitchen. In a previous job I worked as an expediter at a restaurant. You have one chance to impress a customer so nothing leaves the line unless it is perfect. Apparently perfection (Or even basic quality) was not a concern when my order was presented.

I read other reviews about the hash browns being under cooked. One side of my order was grilled dark with the other under cooked. This would indicate a lack of attention, letting the browns sit too long on the first side and rushing the other side to get the order out. This isn't the worse thing that could happen. I simply mixed the hash browns together, tossing the dark with the not so dark and it was fine. I rarely return food.

What was really off was the toast. Who can mess up toast? Barely toasted on one side and absent on the other. Broken toaster? And then it is slathered with melted butter. I didn't return the toast as I don't care for dark, almost burnt toast (and did I mention I abhor food waste?) I only mention this here because it relates to the overall review of my experience.

At the Raymond location it seems like no one is paying attention to quality and first impressions. This is evident in the mistakes in the orders and the cleanliness of the restaurant. And maybe this is reflective of this location. It is worn down. This is what I experienced years ago and stopped going. Granted I do not visit the other locations on a frequent basis but just the cleanliness of the other locations alone would rate them higher. The one consistent measure is the friendliness of the wait staff. When I was a frequent visitor, and again today, the wait staff have always been nice and helpful. Being a server, waiter, bartender, etc... is a tough job. I was one.

So I give credit for the woman that served me today. But the other 4 elements needed for a 5 star review were missing. So why a 2 and not a 1? The place has charm.....But that only...

You know I used to go to Keys all the time and always thought it was great. Well the last 2 times were so bad I will not be going back. Goodbye Keys.

Visit 1: I recently went to the Larpenteur location and was greeted with an eyeroll by a teenage girl who asked me my name. It is "LONG" but I watched her and she wrote it down wrong 3 times and then told me wait, as she checked her iphone! Once seated, a lady I am sure was high, or on Pills or something took our order. My son ordered bacon and eggs and me too, with gluten free toast. She came back with Mickey pancakes and whipped cream. I said it must be someone elses order and she said "No I just thought he would like this better". I called for the manager, who talked to her, and she brought me the wrong order 3 times!!! Never did get my gluten free toast. I called the manager back and he tried to offer me a free cookie. I told him I'm not paying and left.

Visit 2-Raymond (original Keys): The next visit I thought maybe it will be better at the original location. Not. I waited forever for my order to be taken. Then I called someone over and the lady finally came and I asked for a coffee. She brought me 2 coffees, one for my son who is 8! (huh) she then disappeared. I checked my watch and it was 17 minutes and it was not busy at all. When I asked for a manager she came back and said "I'm sorry, I just have a hard time paying attention when it's slow like this". I called the manager back over and he tried to offer me a free baked good. I declined. Then she never came back. The food was brought out by the cook, and I never got a refill on my coffee or a bill. I finally went up to pay and the lady at the counter reeked of cigarettes and refused to get off of her phone. She finally sighed, put down her phone, and asked how it was and I told her how horrible it was and how rude she was for being on her phone while I waited at the counter for a long time. She said "I'm sorry I was at the end of a level." BOYCOTT KEYS. Horrible human beings who don't deserve your money. Oh, and our order was 1 coffee, 1 side of bacon, 1 side of toast, cereal, and OJ. It was $18!!!!!!!!!!! I want you all to know that they have jacked their prices way up. A cup of coffee is close to $3. Save yourself and...

Normally the eclectic surroundings, mom n pop feel, great service, and outstanding food does well in past visits. And never had a problem at the Larpenteur/Lexington location. However it must be new staff that made this a not so good trip with my family to this neighborhood spot. We seated ourselves as the sign stated and others were doing, waited over 15 minutes before I said hi to a passing server who circled back after a few minutes and asked "have you been helped?" We replied "no" and she said "hold on" and walked away. Handful of minutes later a different server came over to start us off. We ordered drinks and food. Drinks were supplied soon, but the food took over 30 minutes for breakfast and only the adults food. We waited another 10 minutes till our kids food arrived. Waffle was cold and the fix was apparently to put it back in the iron to crisp the outside and vaguely heat it. Eggs were either over cooked or extremely runny from what was ordered. Hash browns were burnt, and not just dark brown, black, oil, old grease, sitting in a corner of the grill burnt. We told our server and they shrugged and said "sorry about that." And dropped a bill a few minutes later. No more water refills, no anything else, no leftover containers for the edible remains. No mention of remaking them, discount on the bill, or a manager stopping by. Be a while till we give...